Never Our Reality
by Firey-Moonlight
Summary: AU After the Beaumont family fell from Higher status, Lia resolves to bring D'Eon and herself back up, even if it means falling from Grace in exchange. MaximillienLia DurandDeon


**Never our Reality**

**Warnings: AU, yaoi/slash, unresolved questions and an unrelated song from the slashy movie 'The Talented Mr.Ripley'**

"_Her name is Lia d'Beaumont_."

"_She is Lilith herself! The she-demon who ruined us!_"

Paris in 1742, and not too far off, the equally glorious Versailles – the apples of France's eyes. The poor are hidden away by the splendour of the rich, and the small middle class poses as nobles as every Frenchman and Frenchwoman did their best to rise about in their status. There were several methods to do so, and the most common way was through marriage to one of the higher classes.

But the stories of rising in status do not come without a price, the rich would always be scandalized by the commoners in their circles, and there were always attempts to keep them from rising. For women especially, it was difficult to gain power in patriarch societies as was France at that time. Madame de Pompadour, who rouse from commoner to undisputed mistress of His Majesty the King, was both admired, envied, and hated for her success. Pompadour, who cast aside her former husband to become the King's mistress, was seen by some as ruthlessly ambitious.

The story of the Beaumont siblings, however, soon drew attention away from her.

_La femme fatale, Lia d'Beaumont, and her young protégé D'Eon d'Beaumont, her younger brother. _

The Beaumont family was not rich enough to hold titles of Baron or Count, but they _were_ lower ranking nobles. When they lost that ranking, the father fled and the mother committed suicide. The Beaumont siblings were left alone to fend for themselves, and the words Lia said to her brother were well remembered.

"_I will bring us back, D'Eon, I will bring us back to a house of nobility. Our fall from the nobility will be countered by our rise. The name of Beaumont, our name, will not be spoken without respect_."

And Lia was a person of her word, brilliant and resourceful; no one who met her ever forget her.

"_You are very confident of yourself, Lia d'Beaumont_."

"_Those without confidence will only be looked down and trodden upon, Maximillien. My family may have fallen but I haven't_."

"_Those bearing the tainted name of Beaumont will not be allowed one step into this household_!"

And what had happened after that man – his name was unimportant – had said those words? Lia had calculated the advantages and disadvantages of a marriage. Oh, at that time she had liked Durand, but her affection was nothing compared to his love. What had she said to D'Eon as they were discussing it? "_Now I shall properly and officially marry him. Durand has enough favour from the king, and when I become his wife, the marriage will create a shield against those who tries to oppose me_."

The marriage had not brought the Beaumont siblings back into proper nobility ranking, but it gave them protection from their enemies. On the outside, Durand and Lia seemed happy with the marriage, but those close to them had seen how Lia saw it simply as an arrangement and shield. Teillagory had tried at first to indirectly warn her of what she was doing.

"_You are now a wife, no longer a single woman, do not wield your sword and do not use your husband to your advantage_."

Lia respected her mentor deeply, but even she disagreed, "_Just because I'm a woman and married doesn't mean I have to listen and put down my sword_."

And their marriage had brought even the king along, hadn't it? Not too long in the marriage His Majesty had made a now-famous quote, "_I find it very hard to believe that one of my best knights will give up everything he knew and fought for, just because of one woman_."

"_From this moment on_," Durand smiled as he took Lia's hand, "_I will be your shield, all disasters and enemies, sticks and stones, I will block them for you. No longer will you experience harm or pain, for I promise to protect you_."

Too bad their love didn't last, nor was it strong enough to remain in the face of other obstacles and temptations. Teillagory remembered striking Durand when he walked into the shocking scene.

"_You can love anyone you want, you can love any __man__ you want, but you cannot love the brother of your wife and your fellow knight of the King's Secret_!"

"Do you know what you're doing?" D'Eon had shouted, half angry, half terrified, as he tried to push Durand's body off his own. The man continued holding him down even as he spoke in a slightly confused tone.

"I don't know, I just know I can't control myself…"

"You don't need to speak anymore," D'Eon wiped his mouth in disgust before pointing to the door, "Get out!"

"_D'Eon is your wife's brother, just because he looks like her doesn't mean you can just pretend it's her_!" Teillagory had yelled. He wasn't the only person who had yelled at Durand, the often calm and serious Duke of Broglie had done the same.

"_Have you gone blind? That woman is obviously just using your emotions for her benefit_!"

"_Why?! Why would she use me like this_?!"

But really, he should have known, as D'Eon once said there was no need for Durand to grab his sister and shake her like that, shouting. "_Is it that, no matter how much I love you, how well I treat you, I will mean nothing to you_?!"

The marriage had quickly fallen apart, even though it was obvious both parties had cared for each other. Obvious to others, at least, to them it seemed as if the other no longer cared. The final straw had come at the worst moment possible too.

"_You promised you wouldn't let anything happen to me_," Lia whispered from the hospital bed, "_But you were the one who made me saw the reality of this world_!"

"_I'm sorry…_" Durand had began, but Lia cut him off as she threw the flowers back at him.

"_GET OUT_!!"

It was obvious that their emotions for each other had been true, but by then it was too late. Lia's trust, once broken, was not so easily repaired.

"_Let me protect you once more_."

"_How can you protect me if I cannot even trust you_?" Lia had asked Durand, her face pale and her eyes blank, "_All this time you believe me to be using you and an unfaithful woman_."

D'Eon's eyes had been unreadable as he addressed his brother-in-law, "If you had explained what had happened, if you had spoken the truth at that time, she would have believed you. Its too late now, Durand, Maximillien will succeed you now."

"_My child has been killed_!" Lia had screamed.

"_I can no longer bear children_!"

"My child is dead…" Durand closed his eyes in despair as Robin tried to comfort him. At that time, they didn't know Maximillien had approached Lia and taken her thin, pale hand into his own. A stolen kiss between the two, and Lia had left a message to her soon-to-be-divorced husband. _In the future, no matter what happens, I can only hope I haven't hurt you too badly_.

Lia had been prepared to re-enter the King's Secret, to resume her duty as a knight and swear loyalty to the king, but the troubles her brother had been put through came to light.

"_I want to leave; I'll sooner die then deal with this! I can no longer take orders from a man who brutally forces me into submission every time I am alone with him! Do you know how he treats me? Behind that façade of kingship is a monster driven by sadistic lust! A man such as him cannot be in God's Grace! I will sooner face death then be taken by him any longer_!"

D'Eon's agony and pain had been written clear as day across his face. He had literally screamed that at her face, it had taken both Durand and Teillagory to hold him down, as Lia was too shocked at her brother's news to do anything. She had gone to the King and asked about his opinion regarding her brother, and when the King smiled at her, for the first time she had noticed the gleam in his eyes.

"_As a king, I have always treated all my subordinates with the respect they deserve. Admittedly your brother has my personal interest and favour_."

"_I've been in his service since your marriage and not one day passes where I am happy_!" D'Eon screamed.

For Lia, to say her wrath was great might be an underestimation. Knowing that simple assassination would cost her too much and cause disorder in France, she decided to ruin the King's personal life instead. Anyways, technically she was already going to be legally separated from her husband anyways. Almost with a detached air she had indirectly handed her oblivious brother to Durand before settling with someone else she had long known was unsatisfied with the current monarch – Maximillien Robespierre.

"_Our current king is inferior to his father; even the Duke of Orleans would have done a better job, but monarchy will soon fade away. Watch, Lia, together we will take France back to its rightful path_."

Words that would have been more fitting for Madame de Pompadour, but then again, they had both shared yearnings to reform France. Everything had escalated after Lia and Maximillien teamed up, after the amount of times Lia had rejected him, they had formed an alliance, and with it came the birth of Chaos. The Royal Court descended into another battlefield and they weeded out the King's supporters, all in the guise of the King's name.

"_To accept back your brother when you knew he has been exiled, this is a crime punishable by death_!"

"_These documents should have been classified, to keep them like so reeks of treachery_!"

Of course, the so-called evidence the two usually displayed wasn't always their target's fault, but no one would question the actions of the accusers, who came bearing the King's name. The accusers sometimes would quietly comfort the accused as well, claiming it was actually the King who wanted them sent away. Maximillien, meanwhile, went to prisons and selected the more useful inmates to become part of his Revolutionary Order.

"_From the silence, from the night,  
__Comes a distant lullaby.  
__Cry, remember that first cry,  
__Your brother's standing by,  
__And lot of loved…__Beloved sons of mine_."

To make sure her brother didn't get involved, Lia convinced the king to send him away on a mission, and Louis eventually sent him to England. As Maximillien predicted, Durand followed. Both Lia and Maximillien expected the relationship between D'Eon and Durand to improve when the two of them became such close partners on their 'mission', and indeed it seemed to be the case. Maximillien's contacts in England reported that those two seemed to be getting closer, and this time D'Eon wasn't rejecting him. However, Maximillien did not expect the mission to lead D'Eon straight into the Medmenham Abbey, where Maximillien's teacher Dashwood was.

Despite what the king had done to him, D'Eon knew that without the king France would surely fall apart. The fighting between the Revolutionary Order and the two French agents was inevitable. Maximillien was concerned, on one side was his love's brother and his friend Durand, on the other side was his mentor and the group he had become part of. As more news reached him of their fighting, he grew more alarmed at the developments. It didn't take long before he received notice from his mentor.

_Should the brother of your lover kill one more of our family, or should he actually discover our headquarters, then he shall be silenced forever. I am sending my eyes out now, as much as I would like to recruit your French friends it seems they recoil at the hand I offer them_.

Maximillien knew his mentor wasn't exaggerating, he was serious. D'Eon and Durand hadn't been contacting him for help, but judging from his mentor's words they must be doing pretty well. Maximillien knew they wouldn't be able to handle it if they were pitted against Whitehead; that man may be mute but he sure wasn't useless. Durand and D'Eon could never hope to fight against him.

Without telling Lia, he secretly hurried to France. He had intended to personally intervene before things got out of hand, but by then it was too late. A series of confrontations and sword fights had eventually led to Durand vanishing into the hands of the enemy, blood strains on grass blades the only sign of his presence.

"_Sing a lullaby,  
__Mother is close by.  
__Innocent days,  
__Such innocent eyes_."

D'Eon was upset and guilt-ridden, blaming himself for not being able to help Durand. Maximillien had never seen Lia cry, not even when her family first fell from Higher Society, but as D'Eon tried fruitlessly to contain his tears Maximillien felt as if he was looking at Lia instead. D'Eon's words confirmed to Maximillien what he was suspecting: Durand was now accepted by the other Beaumont. As the blond comforted the younger male, he noted the finger bruises and teeth marks that D'Eon was trying to hide under his clothes. He ran fingers over them experimentally, and D'Eon tensed, but neither of them said anything.

Maximillien had no troubles with comforting the younger man and putting him to sleep before leaving for the Abbey. He knew he had to get Durand out, though Lia had rejected him Maximillien knew she still cared, and now the other Beaumont sibling was involved as well. Durand was also one of his closest friends, so Maximillien knew his decision. When he found out that Whitehead intended to kill Durand, the blond didn't even blink before shooting a bullet between the man's eyes.

Unfortunately, Durand had managed to escape his cell, and had actually heard the conversation between Maximillien and Whitehead. Now knowing that his friend was part of the Revolutionary Order but too injured to fight, Durand had been forced to flee, Maximillien at his heels. The two cut through a forest and came upon the edge of a cliff, where Maximillien lost sight of his best friend when Durand slipped and fell into the darkness.

Giving up the chase, Maximillien instead returned to D'Eon's side. He convinced the distraught Frenchman to secretly switch to another inn so that he wouldn't be found by any more monks…or Durand if the man survived. Maximillien stayed with D'Eon the whole night, making sure that the other monks and Durand wouldn't be able to find them. The oblivious D'Eon didn't mind Maximillien's presence in his room, he was probably too upset or tired to complain. After all, D'Eon didn't know that the blond man beside him was his lover's murderer.

"_And he stole your brother's life,  
__Came home murdered, peace of mind.  
__Left you nightmares on the pillow.  
__Sleep now_."

Maximillien took it upon himself to protect D'Eon from the wrath of Dashwood. He sent D'Eon after several false leads while he himself confronted his mentor and fellow subordinates. With the help of his mercenaries, a man named Cagliostro and a woman named Lorenza, he set up an elaborate trap that brought about the fall of the Hellfire Club. It was intended that the fall be secret, that no one else will find out.

Robin found out.

It seemed the boy had been sent by the Queen to assist D'Eon and Durand in their fight against the Revolutionary Order. Because Durand was currently missing and Maximillien had kept D'Eon hidden from the public, Robin informed the other Beaumont sibling of the Hellfire Club. Lia was quickly in England, and within minutes found where Maximillien was keeping her brother. D'Eon wasn't present in the inn, but Maximillien was, and when Lia came into the room both were equally stunned to see the other.

Then the accusation came out, and Lia demanded to know exactly what the Hellfire Club was and how far Maximillien planned to go against the king of France. Maximillien did not panic, did not lie, he simply said the same words he once told her; "_Together we will take France back to its rightful path_."

The disagreements the two had been holding in finally came out, whereas Lia had simply wanted to ruin the king's personal connections and ensure a smooth transition of power to someone else, Maximillien promoted more radical means to remove the current king from power. Lia argued that such ideas could throw France into chaos, and Maximillien calmly countered that just turning the Nobles against the King could also bring about rebellion. Were they not the ones who nurtured chaos in the Royal Court? Had she not continued adding coal to the fire of dissent, burning stronger and stronger between the Nobles and the King?

Maximillien's words were not something Lia wanted to hear, but she knew it was something she should _have_ to hear. His voice held no cruelty or malice in them, he did not mean to hurt Lia, but he was going to let her know that she was every bit as dark as he was. He continued to calmly assault her with words, words that she didn't want to hear, but were the truth, and she couldn't deny it. They may have destroyed the Hellfire Club, the strongest and most influential part of the Revolutionary Order, but it didn't meant the Hellfire Club and all its members were gone.

_They_ were the Hellfire Club, it would continue to exist as long as they still had their goals. Maximillien already knew what new members he will be recruiting for it. In multiple mythologies it was a man and a woman who started the world and brought everlasting change, symbolically they were ideal couple for it. Both Maximillien and Lia had the intellect, the skills, the courage and the determination. Logically, they could decide the fate of the country, if not the world.

Yes, there would be fighting, there may be wars, but it was very likely that they would be the victors. After all, the people against them could only be those who were less intelligent, conservative people unwilling to accept change. The common people of France may not wish to be lead into a future they do not understand, a world envisioned by the intellectually smart, and the Revolutionary Order may have to force them; but someday the people would thank them. People would admire the Revolutionary Order for bringing change, for eliminating a self-serving king and the nobles who stepped on those below them.

Didn't Lia also felt the need, when the nobles looked down upon her after the Beaumont family's fall from status? True, she had been climbing back up, but in exchange haven't she fallen from God's Grace? She no longer had anything to lose, but everything to gain. The sacrifices, Maximillien claimed, would be worth it in their end, even if the sacrifice for this round was Durand.

That was when D'Eon, accompanied by Robin, had walked in. They had heard everything, and Robin took off after Maximillien. D'Eon, meanwhile, grabbed his sister and asked her why.

Why, why, WHY?!

And Lia didn't say anything, her eyes dulled and her body limp. D'Eon shook his head, staring at her.

"My beloved sister, for the sake of status and money, would destroy my most beloved? This isn't the Lia I knew and loved! Doesn't it mean anything to you that I liked him, or that he once loved you? I don't think I can ever see you again without feeling hurt and betrayed!"

"_Soul, surrendering your soul,  
__The heart in you not whole,  
__For love, but love walked on_."

Robin had been unable to find Maximillien, and when he returned only Lia was in the room, D'Eon had left. Lia softly told Robin to make his report to the Queen before she herself left. Robin was confused and upset, unsure how he could tell the queen that Durand was missing and that Lia and Maximillien were plotting revolution. It also hurt him deeply that Durand was missing and possibly dead.

He searched aimlessly for his missing friends, all in vain. There was not even a whisper of Durand and the Beaumont siblings seem to have vanished into the darkness. Robin never reported to the Queen, and he never revealed himself to the Royal Family of England. Finally, Teillagory arrived to England through the proper channels and found him. The famed swordsman demanded an answer, and the tired Robin broke down and told him everything.

Teillagory couldn't believe his ears, that his bright student Lia and the brave Maximillien were plotting to overthrow the monarchy was something he had never seen coming. If that was true, then they had to find D'Eon before the other two did. Since Teillagory had entered England through the proper channels, he was able to ask for help to locate D'Eon, and eventually Teillagory found his other student. He had been in the forest, searching for Durand, but unable to find anything.

With D'Eon secured, Robin asked the adults the question that was plaguing their minds: Should they tell the French Royal Family of Lia's and Maximillien's betrayal? Duty said yes, they would have to, but to everyone's surprise, Teillagory said no.

"We will tell them of the Hellfire Club and its purpose, but we will not tell them of Maximillien's and Lia's role."

It was odd that the man would say such a thing. Teillagory was very much a knight with the ideals of serving the king pat down. It should have warned the others, but D'Eon had been too distraught, and Robin had been more then happy to let the man make the decision. The same Teillagory who tried to warn Lia about being a proper woman, kept Durand from being unintentionally tempted by D'Eon, and stuck by D'Eon when the young man revealed what the king had been doing to him, had other motives for the silence. As soon as they returned to French soil, they were arrested by the Duke of Orleans' men. It was by sheer luck that Robin managed to escape, but not before learning the truth: Teillagory was more loyal to the Duke then the current king.

"As you once said, D'Eon, a man like Louis '_cannot be in God's Grace!_' I too will sooner face death then to be taking orders from him any longer. Our current king is weak, unfit for kingship. He allowed commoners like Pompadour too much power, for nobles to fall and lost their prestige, and he gave up our New France territories to the British, his uncle would have done a better job."

Teillagory himself was in the thick of the Revolutionary Order. Taking D'Eon to the home of the Duke of Orleans, he locked the younger Beaumont in a room, but a rather luxurious one. D'Eon soon found out why, it literally walked into the room as soon as Teillagory left: Maximillien.

The blond reassured D'Eon he would not be harmed, unless he tried to escape. It proved inefficient, as D'Eon tried to escape from the palace several times. He never succeeded, if not Maximillien, the mercenaries Cagliostro and Lorenza always managed to catch him and locked him back up. Maximillien never seemed annoyed by his attempts, if anything they seemed to amuse him.

"You can't run, my brother-in-law, where can you go? To the king? You of all people should know not to go to him alone. To the queen? She is frequently surrounded by people and even harder to approach."

D'Eon had no problem with retaliating, but never when Maximillien touched him. The blond liked watching the finger bruises and teeth marks, _Durand's_ marks, fade away from D'Eon's skin, leaving it unblemished and smooth once more. The one time Maximillien gave into the temptation and left his own marks on the younger male's skin, D'Eon had tried desperately to fight him off, before giving in to quiet whimpers. Later, he nearly took Maximillien's head off with one of the Duke of Orleans' displayed weapons.

Maximillien thought it was an overkill, it wasn't as if he did anything more then mark the Beaumont male. Then again, he supposed because D'Eon first went through the king before the almost-gentle Durand, he might have crossed a line somewhere. He wondered what Teillagory would say, that man had been pretty upset when he walked into Durand and D'Eon so long ago. No matter, marking D'Eon hadn't meant anymore then dominance and control.

"_Cast into the dawn,  
__Branded with the mark,  
__Oh, shame of Cain_."

Apparently what Maximillien did, plus the lack of information about his missing lover Durand and friend Robin, along with Teillagory's and possibly his sister's betrayal, pushed D'Eon to the edge. Lorenza and Caliostro walked into the room one day to find him with the broken pieces of a glass around him and his wrists slit. They managed to stabilize his condition, but D'Eon wouldn't wake up. Maximillien issued orders for doctors and guards to check on D'Eon frequently, and threatened their lives if anything else was to happen to the younger Beaumont. Teillagory finally asked why Maximillien seemed so concerned about his brother-in-law, and Maximillien had smiled.

"Isn't it obvious? This is to bait Lia in, I haven't seen her since that child chased me away. She will come for her brother."

"How can you be sure of that?" Teillagory asked again. Maximillien glanced down at D'Eon's still body, before turning to look out the window, crossed with iron bars.

"_In my whole life, the one person I have grown to love more then my own life, is Lia d'Beaumont. No one knows her more then I do, for I have studied her for as long as I have known her_."

For a while time seemed to still, despite an increasing number of thunder storms at night the days passed by almost slowly. No news of Robin came, and the contacts from England said that Durand's body was still missing. The same thing went to Lia, no one seemed to have seen her, as if she herself had vanished in England's fog. D'Eon remained in bed, his body warm but as still as death. Not one for standing around, Maximillien continued expanding his Revolutionary Order, but he didn't reestablish the Hellfire Club. He was going to wait until Lia returned to him for that.

Then, out of blue, he heard news: Lia had returned to France.

Maximillien knew it could just be a rumor, but he had to go make sure. He left his sanctuary in the palace of the Duke of Orleans, only to arrive and learn that the rumors were false – they had been spread by a young boy whom Maximillien could guess was Robin. The blond man returned to the palace in a foul mood, where he found more unpleasant news.

It seemed that D'Eon actually _had_ been recovering, and had been using the thunderstorms as a cover as he tried to escape once more. Since Maximillien had removed all weapons and anything remotely sharp from D'Eon's room after D'Eon had tried to kill him, Lia's brother had resorted to using one of the heavier chairs to smash through the iron bars over his window. It had never worked as his body had been recovering, and he was limited to the time when the guards and doctors were not checking on him, but on that stormy night he finally managed to smash through the iron bars and window, giving him the chance to escape.

Everything after that happened quicker then Maximillien expected, because as soon as D'Eon escaped, Lia returned to publicity.

"_I once promised that for the sake of my brother and the Beaumont family, I will bring us back to higher society! No longer will we have to suffer in the hands of the nobles! Those who get in my way shall be eliminated_!"

Teillagory, shouting out his warnings, "Leave this palace! Lia's set explosives to bring us down!"

Robin firing bullets against any who approached him "Do you seriously think it matters who I shoot now?!"

Lia at the nobleman's deathbed, "You think you've signed the correct documents, I've switched them, and now your fortune belongs to the Beaumonts, and you've restored our power!"

King Louis staring at the papers in his hand, "She has grown too powerful, Broglie, is it time we get rid of her?"

The people crowding the streets, numbers gathered by Lia, shouting "For France!"

Maximillien addressing his followers, "From now on, the fall of France's monarchy shall begin. I shall lead you to victory!"

The cries of the people, from both higher and lower society, filled the air.

"Maximillien was the one who sent them to Lia, but Lia was the one who sent us to hell!"

"What has the nobles done for France and its people?"

"The king wants to take what he sees as his, how foolishly naïve!"

"What the Beaumont sister has done to us, I will make sure she pays in her family's blood!"

"Beware of the woman named Beaumont!"

"And the story shall continue even without my lover and sister," D'Eon whispered as he removed the wig and turned around to look at Maximillien. Even without his sister's hair, D'Eon fitted his sister's dress perfectly and thus resembled her greatly, "The king cannot kill Lia, for her spirit shall live on in me."

"_Where is Lia_?"

"Here in my blood and body."

"_Where is Durand_?"

"Here in my heart."

And D'Eon was looking at Maximillien with something akin to pity, "You and my sister, for the sake of your pride, would give up happiness. Was it worth it? I've lost Durand; have you already lost my sister?"

"_From a garden of those light,  
__To a wilderness of night.  
__Sleep now…sleep now_."

Robin stared at D'Eon, an exact replication of his sister except for the voice, and can no longer distinguish between when he was acting as his sister and when he was himself.

**I felt like writing something besides my other multichaptered fics after I watched the Chevalier D'Eon episodes and read the four manga volumes in Chapters. **


End file.
